Pakistan have recalled all-rounder Faheem Ashraf and handed a maiden call-up to middle-order batter Tayyab Tahir in the 18-member squad for the Asia Cup and the ODI series against Afghanistan.
Faheem last played an ODI in 2021 after which he was sidelined due to injuries and loss of form. Tahir has been rewarded for his impressive domestic performances. He was also among the runs in the recently concluded Emerging Asia Cup where he stroked a century in the final.
Shan Masood, who was appointed ODI vice-captain in January, has been left out in the squad led by Babar Azam.
“Preference has been given to Faheem Ashraf, since the squad doesn’t have another fast-bowling all-rounder,” new chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq said at a press conference in Lahore after announcing the squad.
“If you look at PSL and other tournaments, he was in good form. And we need an all-rounder, he is a fast-bowling all-rounder, which we need at the World Cup.
“Shan (Masood) has performed very well across formats. Unfortunately, his performances in the ODIs have gone down. We have a list of 20-21 players, and Shan is part of that. But Saud Shakeel and a couple of other players were impressive recently, so we had to leave out Shan. But he is a part of our plans,” he clarified.
Masood has played just nine ODIs, four of them this year, in which he totalled 52 runs with a highest score of 44.
The PCB confirmed that the squad will assemble in Hambantota on August 18.
Inzamam said the World Cup squad would not necessarily be from the players included here and he would keep an “open mind.”
